Tag Archives: quality

GWC Dirty Dozen and Sabal Trail pipeline drilling mud leak on WALB 2016-11-16

People and news media turned out from Florida and Georgia at the Withlacoochee River US 84 bridge in cross-state-line solidarity about the Sabal Trail pipeline and its recent drilling mud leak. They heard the Georgia Water Coalition announce that Sabal Trail is, for the third year running, on the Dirty Dozen 2016.

Ashlyn Becton, WALB, 16 November 2016, Environmentalist raise awareness about Sabal Trail Pipeline,

Folks from North Florida and South Georgia held a protest at the Withlacoochee River Wednesday and listened to a news conference announcing the Georgia Water Coalition’s Dirty Dozen.

The report highlights the worst offenses and greatest threats to Georgia’s bodies of water.

And the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline is on the GWC Dirty Dozen 2016, as Chattahoochee, Flint, Withlacoochee Rivers and Floridan Aquifer: Gas pipeline company, federal agency run roughshod over state, local residents property rights, with this What Must Be Done: Continue reading →

WWALS: “It did happen”, Sabal Trail: “inadvertent”, WUSF, Tallahassee

Do you think Sabal Trail’s excuse that it was “inadvertent” is enough? Come on down to the US 84 bridge 9:30 this morning, hear more, and have your say.

Turbidity curtains with human for scale (Chris Mericle) Nick Evans, WUSF, 14 November 2016, Drilling Mud Leak In South Georgia Raises New Sabal Trail Pipeline Concerns,

Water activists are raising the alarm over a South Georgia drilling leak in the Withlacoochee River. Sabal Trail is drilling beneath the river to build a more than 500-mile natural gas pipeline stretching from Alabama to Florida.

WWALS Watershed Coalition works to protect Continue reading →

Sabal Trail still leaking drilling mud into the Withlacoochee River at US 84 in GA 2016-11-12

Update 2016-11-22:

Update 2016-11-14: GWC Dirty Dozen Press Conference at US 84 Bridge with tour of Sabal Trail HDD 2016-11-16

Steve Patterson, Jacksonville.com, 14 November 2016, Gas pipeline project headed to Suwannee River leaks into Georgia waterway; sparks environmental worries

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Turbidity curtains with human for scale (Chris Mericle) Hahira, GA, November 13th 2016 — Apparently Sabal Trail continues to leak drilling mud into the Withlacoochee River, three weeks after it admitted to GA-EPD that its pilot hole under the river had leaked up into the riverbed.

WWALS members Deanna and Chris Mericle went to the US 84 bridge between Quitman and Valdosta, Georgia, and walked up the river to the site, about 2000 feet upstream. You can clearly see the water inside Sabal Trail’s turbidity curtains is not the same color as the river water.

“I am so angry because this is what we said would happen and we were assured the rivers wouldn’t be affected because they were drilling under them. The head woman at FDEP said exactly that! We told them it was likely because of our karst geology and we got patronized and patted on the head. You can guarantee they will downplay it and just drill another hole. I am pissed,” said WWALS member Deanna Mericle, who drafted the WWALS petition for last year’s four-month legal case and three-day hearing in WWALS v Sabal Trail & FDEP. Continue reading →

Cancer in Waycross and the upper Suwannee River watershed

At least the Waycross cancer problem is finally getting some news media attention. Brenda Goodman and Andy Miller, Georgia Health News, October 20, 2016, Why are kids in Waycross getting cancer? (Part One of Special Report),

Fourteen-year-old Lexi Crawford was attacked by lower back pain so sharp that she couldn’t even sit up to eat. Her mother had to bring her food while she was lying flat on her back. Doctors in Waycross, GA, the town where she lives, thought it was a kidney infection. But after months of antibiotics didn’t clear it up, a visiting doctor in the local ER suggested an X-ray.

What he saw on the scan was terrifying.

Continue reading →

Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant old and new 2016-10-22

Old and New WWTP and landfill, 30.8212690, -83.3581890 Uphill and farther from the river: the new Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment plant (top left of center) seen next to the old one, the Pecan Row Landfill, and the Withlacoochee River. Come ask your questions for the entire Suwannee River basin about wastewater and flood prevention this Thursday, October 27th 2016, at the Valdosta City Hall Annex. The $60 million in fixes so far and those still in progress are a big improvement for everybody downstream to the Gulf on the Withlacoochee, Alapaha, and Suwannee Rivers, and upstream on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail. Continue reading →

Suwannee-Satilla and GA coastal river water councils in Dublin, GA 2016-11-17

Next month, once again the upper Suwannee that drains into the Gulf gets pulled into a meeting with coastal Georgia Water Planning Councils. This is the meeting that got delayed by hurricane.

GA DNR, Bulletin, 18 October 2016,

Joint Regional Water Planning Council Meeting NEW DATE: November 17, 2016

Georgia Department of Natural Resources sent this bulletin at 10/18/2016 09:18 AM EDT

NOTICE:

JOINT REGIONAL WATER PLANNING COUNCIL MEETING

Announcement Date: October 18, 2016

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS AND PARTIES:

A Joint Council Meeting will be held for the Altamaha, Coastal Georgia, Middle Ocmulgee, Savannah-Upper Ogeechee, Suwannee-Satilla and Upper Oconee Regional Water Planning Councils at the following date, time, and location:

Continue reading →

Valdosta wastewater and flood prevention public meeting by WWALS 2016-10-27

New WWTP, 30.8327808, -83.3283234 Update 2016-10-23: Seen from the air.

Update 2016-10-19: PDF flyer.

Come hear about the $60 million in wastewater fixes Valdosta just finished, what remains to be done, and what they’re doing about flood prevention for the entire Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida. You can ask questions in this first of a new WWALS Quarterly Speaker Series, and the people organizing this work will be there to answer:

  • Henry Hicks, Utilities Director, about wastewater
  • Emily Davenport, Assistant Director of Engineering, about flooding, and
  • Tim Carroll, Valdosta City Council, about solar power for utilities.

When: 6PM Thursday October 27th

Where: Valdosta City Hall Annex
Multipurpose Room
300 N Lee St.
Valdosta, GA 31601 Continue reading →

Suwannee-Satilla and GA coastal river water councils in Dublin, GA 2016-10-06

Update 2016-10-07: Postponed due to Hurricane Matthew. New date not yet known.

Next week, once again the upper Suwannee that drains into the Gulf gets pulled into a meeting with coastal Georgia Water Planning Councils.

GA DNR, Bulletin, 27 September 2016, Statewide Water Plan – Joint Council Meeting #2 Agenda – October 6 / Dublin, GA,

Joint Council Meeting #2 — Eastern Councils
Thursday, October 6, 2016

Dubose Porter Center
Oconee Fall Line Technical College
560 Pinehill Road
Dublin, GA 31021

Agenda Continue reading →

Little River Scouting 2016-07-10

My phone’s pedometer said I walked four miles of the six miles of this section of the Little River, with many fish, two white birds, lots of sand bars, some eroded bluffs, not a lot of trash after we got beyond the GA 76 bridge, and only one spot of invasive species (Japanese climbing fern).

Walk along home

This section would be better with about half a foot more water. The USGS GA 122 Little River gage showed about 3.71 feet for July 10th 2016, so let’s say at least 4.2 feet would be good. This is because there are many sand bars, including one directly upstream from the GA 122 bridge, where the water level is much closer to zero when that gage says 3.71.

Following up a report, Continue reading →

WWALS Adopt-A-Stream Cleanup at Berrien Beach Landing (GA 168) –Gretchen Quarterman 2016-09-10

WWALS collected many bags of trash and four mattresses Saturday in the Rivers-Alive Cleanup at Berrien Beach Launch on the Alapaha River.

At Berrien Beach (with permission) Thanks to Bret Wagenhorst for organizing this annual cleanup. Special thanks to the three members of Valdosta State’s Students Against Violating the Environment (S.A.V.E.) for joining in, and a student from UGA Tifton!

This outing was also part of the Great Suwannee River Cleanup, and we’ll have some more of those this year. This particular cleanup was at Berrien Beach Landing in Berrien County on the Alapaha River Water Trail. Thanks to Al Browning and the landowner for access to the sands of Berrien Beach in Lanier County.

See also the Video: #NoDAPL #NoSabalTrail —WWALS 2016-09-10.

More WWALS outings:

Continue reading →